There is a statement which says that ‘Corporations exist to provide products and/or services that produce profits for their shareholders’ and the cite is from Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sports. This statement lumps far too many things in the same box. Corporations, business in society, capitalism and why people go into business are all different things. Please consider the following:
-The purpose of using a corporation is to provide legal protection for owners (shareholders) who hire managers to run the daily operations of their business. (“Corporations” The Yale Law Journal, Vol. 11, No. 5 (Mar., 1902), pp. 223-245)(“Are Corporations Morally Defensible?” Gillian Brock Business Ethics Quarterly, Vol. 8, No. 4 (Oct., 1998), pp. 703-721)
-The purpose of businesses in a capitalist society is to provide efficient division of labor so that society can benefit from the innovativeness driven by competition. (The Natural Roots of Capitalism and Its Virtues and Values Sherwin Klein Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 45, No. 4 (Jul., 2003), pp. 387-401)(Realizing the Spirit and Impact of Adam Smith’s Capitalism through Entrepreneurship Realizing the Spirit and Impact of Adam Smith’s Capitalism through Entrepreneurship Scott L. Newbert Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Sep., 2003), pp. 251-261)
-Why individuals do business is to maximize their own personal exchange in a market. (“The Why’s of Business Revisited” Ronald F. Duska Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 16, No. 12/13, From the Universities to the Marketplace: The Business Ethics Journey: The Second Annual International Vincentian Conference Promoting Business Ethics (Sep., 1997), pp. 1401-1409)
Consider the following quote about capitalism: “More than two centuries ago, Adam Smith wrote The Theory of Moral Sentiment and The Wealth of Nations wherein he argued that capitalism was a system of economic organization whereby social welfare can be most efficiently created through the pursuit of economic and moral self-interest. However, due to the undue focus on the latter of these two works, modern economic thinking has become dominated by the belief that the pursuit of economic self-interests alone will engender the greatest social welfare. Unfortunately, such reasoning becomes problematic when the externalities that often spawn from economically driven capitalist endeavors are considered. It appears then that in order to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs of a capitalist system, the interests of both the self and society must be considered, which of course was Adam Smith’s argument.” (Newbert 2003 from above).
I would take out that first statement and revise the second so that we avoid the debate in this section.
The Purpose and role of a business
Businesses in our society can influence every aspect of our lives. They have such power and can create trends so easily that they have an obligation to promote good. Their shear size, power, and monetary influence allows them to heavily sway public opinion.
From the Wikipedia discussion page for Corporate Social Responsibility